Beauty

Skin care advice: Is your skin stressed out?

Beauty

Skin care advice: Is your skin stressed out?

With clear, luminous skin emerging as one of the biggest beauty trends for Spring 2012 — we saw flawless, dewy complexions at Isabel Marant, Stella McCartney and Christopher Kane — it might be time to seek some skin care advice and assess your skin’s health and whether external stressors are contributing to a less than perfect complexion. To get to the bottom of the physiological relationship between skin and stress, we spoke with Sarah Kugelman, Founder and President of stress-focused skin care line Skyn Iceland (skyniceland.com) to get her skin care advice on how and why our skin reacts to stress, and what we can do to with our skin care routine to maintain balance both inside and out.

1. Kugelman explains that stress affects skin in five different ways:

• Congestion and breakouts Stress spikes the hormone cortisol, which in turn stimulates an over-production of oil that clogs pores, causing
blackheads and breakouts, says Kugelman.

• Redness and irritation High stress levels can aggravate and worsen pre-existing skin conditions like redness, eczema and psoriasis. If your skin is acting out more than it normally would, assess your external stressors and evaluate whether your skin is suffering as a result.

• Dullness, dryness and dehydration “When I left the corporate world due to high levels of stress, my skin was drastically dehydrated — I had been surviving off of caffeine and adrenaline for years,” says Kugelman. If that kind of hectic, fast-paced lifestyle sounds familiar to you, it’s time to assess the quality of your skin as a signifier of your overall health.

• Accelerated aging “Not surprisingly, accelerated aging is one of the easiest ways to tell if you have stressed out skin,” says Kugelman. Stress causes the breakdown of collagen and elastin (our skin’s support structure), therefore you develop
premature fine lines around the eyes and mouth as signs of elevated stress levels.

More skin care advice on how to treat your skin from the inside out on the next page …2. How to treat stressed skin from the inside out

• Reduce or eliminate external contributors Caffeine, alcohol, sugar and processed foods are at the top of this list. To maintain balance within the body, foods and beverages that spike insulin levels, induce inflammation and create an acidic environment within the body should be reduced or outright avoided.

• Connect mind to body Through regular exercise and deeper practices like yoga and meditation, maintaining a stress-free emotional state through physical activity can make a huge difference in your overall health. Hot yoga and Pilates, regular steaming and saunas are also effective tools to induce sweat, release toxins and tackle stressed skin in general.

3. How to topically treat stressed skin

• Simplify your regimen When it comes to your
skin’s health (and the stress it might be experiencing), the simpler the regimen the better. A unique property of
Skyn Iceland is that it’s not tailored to skin type — this is a one-type-fits-all formula, assuming that stress is the catalyst for the many different skin ailments that we experience. “The line was conceived on the notion that skin needs to be addressed from a standpoint of stress and not from a focus on the topical ailments themselves,” says Kugelman.

• Get regular facials Getting into a routine with a professional esthetician is a great way to get the ball rolling to healthier, stress-free skin. Aim for a
monthly facial at first, followed up by once every two or three months to maintain healthy skin regardless of how stressful your external environment is.

If you’re experiencing external stress like tight deadlines, trouble sleeping, a lack of time and an unbalanced diet, your skin might be acting out as a cry for help. As our largest organ, the quality of the skin is the easiest way to tell what’s going on inside the body and whether we need to make changes. If you suspect stress is affecting your skin, start with a simplified skin care regimen free of harsh chemicals and ditch processed, refined foods and caffeinated beverages for a cleaner diet that doesn’t tax the body’s natural balance. To maintain a sense of calm, physical exercise like cardio and yoga can centre our emotional states and contribute to a balanced lifestyle where stress is nothing if not entirely manageable.

The trailer for the new Baywatch movie is here

Movies & TV

The trailer for the new Baywatch movie is here

You know what your Thursday needs? This teaser trailer for the Baywatch reboot, that's what.

Now, we could extoll the virtues of this clip—The Rock! Zac Efron's abs! The Rock and Zac Efron's abs on a moped together!—but that would deprive you of the joy of experiencing this surprisingly funny clip with fresh eyes yourself.

Celebrity

The Madonna Carpool Karaoke is here in all its glory

This Late Late Show Carpool Karaoke really needs no introduction. Madonna did what she did best – slay – on the segment with James Corden. In fact, she might be the only celebrity so far who did a full-body performance in her seat, complete with leg kicks and twerks.

Frank + Oak and the NBA team up on Raptors merch

Trends

Frank + Oak and the NBA team up on Raptors merch

Canadian fashion label Frank + Oak is always up to something, and tomorrow the Montreal-based brand will drop a 9-piece Raptors collection in collaboration with the NBA. The pieces that make up the line are directional, minimal and best of all—unisex. The pieces include a crisp Oxford shirt patterned with a subtle team logo, a heather grey waffle knit mock-neck and a leather backpack. The coolest piece might be the two-tone pop-over shirt. The Oxford's mock-neck collar and mix of materials offer a completely new take on fan gear. Even fair-weather fans (hey, no judgement) will be tempted by this sleek collab.

The collection will launch tomorrow online and at Frank + Oak's Queen West and CF Sherway Gardens outposts as well as the Real Sports Apparel shop at the Air Canada Center. The brand is set to release merch for 5 more NBA teams in 2017. Until then, go Raptors, go!

8 fashion brands every minimalist will love

Shopping

8 fashion brands every minimalist will love

Although Alessandro Michele makes a compelling case for more-is-more, some of us will always be drawn to restrained, clean designs. These labels are proving that minimal style doesn't have to boring or unimaginative.

For those of you who prefer your bikini free of palm fronds and hibiscus blooms, there's Aussie brand Matteau Swim, known for basic maillots and high-waisted swim bottoms in a palette of black, grey and white.

Launched this year by Catherine Holstein, Khaite is a balance of the masculine and feminine. Fans of the capsule wardrobe concept will find that pieces in the line, from structured shirt dresses to fitted denim, compliment one another perfectly.

Alnea Farahbella's label Toit Volant is made in the USA with a commitment to sustainable sourcing and manufacturing practices. The pre-spring 2017 collection is full of reworked takes on shirting, like this striped jumpsuit with a high collar.

This Montreal-based label keeps production local (the clothes are sewn in Montreal and some of the fabrics are printed in North America) and its ethos is similar to most of the other brands in this list: to let the individual add personality to the clothes.

Another L.A. brand with a dedication to North American manufacturing and sustainability, 5-year-old Shaina Mote is known for architectural, un-adorned basics and fluid silhouettes. If you could live your life without ever donning a polka dot or cheery stripe, the neutral colours in this line are made for you.

Founded by Tokyo-to-L.A. transplants Alexander Yamaguchi and Momoko Suzuki, brand Black Crane is an edgier, more street-wise take on minimalism – think cocoon dresses and wrap trousers with subtle origami and kimono inspiration.